The volatile situation continues...

I went back to work after lunch today and chatted with a coworker. He said downtown was interesting today. The roads that form the town square were largely blocked by burning tires.

I asked if it was a dangerous situation. He said it was NBD. It was more just a nuisance to have to slow down and navigate the flaming hazards like an obstacle course.

Personally, I'm not so sure that it's NBD. Volatile situations can explode at anytime. And it was only two weeks ago that Jeremie had a public necklacing.

And now that the sun has set, I hear the chanting starting again. And though the gunshots were limited this afternoon. I've heard a few nearby in just the past couple minutes.

For all the above reasons, I applaud all of Cheshire. Next week two people -- Steve Carroll and Patti Flynn Harris -- will take office. And I'm quite certain that there will be no tire burnings, no gunfire, no necklacings, no burned out government offices, no road blockades, no airport closings... because we've got that wonderful little phrase we tend to live by... peaceful transition of power. It really is something special.

As for when things may calm down? I don't know. But I know that there was an expectation that two candidates from the non-incumbent party were expected to proceed to the Jan 16 runoff. But yesterday's announcement indicated that one of the two candidates -- the one with a demographic comprised largely of young supporters -- would not be in the runoff. Instead, the candidate from the incumbent party would proceed. Which of course, leaves the 18-30 yr old demographic upset. So much of the immediate future of Haiti rests in the words of "Sweet Mickey." What he says matters.

Now... let's see if I can study tonight...

Tim White

P.S. Since I arrived here, a lot of email has failed to get delivered to me... including stuff I send to myself! So if you email me and I don't reply, it may be due to malfunctioning email. My FB emails seem to be working though. So feel free to friend me / email me there.